Device for shrinking leather



April 18, 1 933. H T'Z ER ET AL 1,904,787

f DEVICE FOR SHRINKING LEATHER Filed Nov. 4, 1930 INVENTD R5 J. l/l'fxhr, 6 f: C. Marx,

5 wi ene Patented Apr. 18,

I UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOSE! HITZLEB, F rnAmonr-on-m-nm, AND FRIEDRICH 'GLBL JULIUS HEB 03'FRANKI'OBT-ON-THE-KAIN-BODELEEII, GERMANY DEVICE FOR warm Applicationfiled November 4, 1980, Serial No. 0,876, and in Germany Iovemlacr 8,1989.

The resent invention relates to a device for shrinking or contractingleather and es pecially for contracting and thereby resha in leatherarticles which have been and deformed by use, such as for instanceladies shoes.

Shoes, especially ladies shoes and similar articles are frequentlydeformed in use. Hereby the shoe loses in appearance, especially whenthe upper ed e of the same is widened. The ob ect of t e resentinvention is to reshape such articles y contracting the widened partsartificially. The resha ing is according to the invention perform bymeans of an easily operable clamping device and a plieror tong-likearrangement.

Some preferred forms of the invention are illustrated by way of examplesin the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 shows a simple plier-likemechanism with clampin device in operative position.

Fig. 2 is a ateral view of the same invention.

Fig. 3 is a lateral view of a clamping device according to theinvention.

Fig. 4 shows a modified constructional form of pliers, which areequipped with an electric heating device.

Fig. 5 shows another modification of the clamping device in operativeposition.

In accordance with the invention the widened or stretched leather pieceof a shoe is contracted by clamping the piece to be re-' shaped in twoclam ing mechanisms a, b, b 0 in such a mannert at a small fold isformed between the clamping members or that the deformed piece in foldedor'crimped state is pinched between the clampin members. According toFig. 1 the pliers terminate in two reinforced jaws 6. These jaws areheated to a temperature of 140-150 C. by means of-electricity, gas, oran other fuel and are thereupon pressed toget er between the clampingmembers. Through this treatment the heated part of the shoe will shrinkand when the c amping members are so arate the shoe may be removed fromthe device inresha ed state. y

Instead o the lier-lik'e pressing device and the described ampingarrangement any other mechanisms may be used, the opera-- tion of whichis so simple, that the reshaplng ma be performed also by unskilledpersons.

ccording to Fi 1-3 the clamping device comprises a U-s aped strap 1), a,b. The leather is placed on the plates 6 and the plates 6 are pressedagainst the leather by means of the wing-nuts 0. The distance betweenthe clamping members should preferably correspond substantially with thewidth of the pliers jaws. The width and other dimensions of the pliersmay vary within wide limits.

According to the-Figs. 4 and 5 the clamping device consists of aU-shaped strap. On each of the free ends of this strap a pivotalclamping lever i,-lc is resiliently arranged in such a manner, that thesame may be opened and the leather may be inserted by P 1;; its freeend. According to Fi 4 thy g jaws are equipped with an e ectric -eatingbody f and with supply wires g. The latter may conveniently be assedthrough the handle] of the device. e device ma for heating be con led toany desired hting leads. Thee amping device and the pliers arepreferably constructed in the form of separate devices, in order thatclamping devices of different width may be used in connection with thesame liers.

At the electrically heated form of the lnvention the clamping devicesand'the pliers are preferablycombmed and the strap 11. is 10- a gateddirectly on the lower part of the pliers aws.

We claim: t

A method of shrinking or contractin leather and especially of reshapinthe wi ened upper leatherof shoes an the like,

piece in order to bring forth the

